Seanad Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 15 Feb 2017

Vol. 250 No. 2

Annual National Transition Statement on Climate Action and Low Carbon Development: Statements

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (Deputy Michael Creed)

I thank Senators for giving me the opportunity to address the House on the important matter of climate action.

We have a thriving agrifood sector which includes the forest sector, and one that is efficient and environmentally conscious. However, everyone in this room will be aware that we face one of the greatest dual challenges of our time, namely, ensuring food security for all and simultaneously dealing with dangerous climate change.

As Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine I am very conscious of these challenges - challenges that have been acknowledged globally in both the Paris Agreement and the sustainable development goals. I assure the House of my commitment to ensuring the agriculture sector and our forests play their part in doing everything to address these challenges through the development and adoption of mitigation and adaptation measures. I am not alone in this regard and I think the importance of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 in putting our climate policy on a statutory basis shows the commitment of the Government to addressing this challenging task.

In terms of mitigation and as required by the Act, the national mitigation plan is currently being prepared by the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment who is the lead in this area. Agriculture sector mitigation measures, including the afforestation programme, have been prepared for input to the national mitigation plan and there has been ongoing consultation and co-operation between both Departments. As a sector, we engaged with our stakeholders through open policy debate and public consultation on agriculture and forest measures, and continue to refine and further develop appropriate measures.

The agriculture sector measures which have been inputted to the national mitigation plan not only focus on the mitigation of greenhouse gases and improving resource efficiency but are also aimed at restoring, preserving and enhancing ecosystems related to agriculture. Good farming practices supported by the Common Agriculture Policy under Pillar 1, and the rural development plan under Pillar 2 contribute to the protection of the carbon pool stored in Irish farmland. Additionally, by influencing change and improving sustainability at farm level, this can increase farm viability leading to quality of life improvements.

With regard to forest, the measures include increasing the level of forest cover, supply of forest-based biomass, wood mobilisation and enhancements to the environmental and social benefits of forests. There are national, economic and rural development benefits from the harvesting and processing of wood, increasing and sustaining the wood processing sector. Public leisure and health benefits also arise from forest recreation. Forests also have a role in the protection of water and the alleviation of flooding.

A national mitigation plan briefing document has been published by my colleague, the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, in advance of a public consultation on the full draft plan.

I will now turn to adaptation. Under the Act, a national adaptation framework is required by December of this year. When the framework is in place, it will set out the requirement for sectoral adaptation plans.

Under the national climate change adaptation framework which was released in 2012, my Department was charged with the development of sectoral adaptation plans in three areas, namely, agriculture, forestry and the marine. Currently, my Department is developing two separate adaptation plans - one covering the agriculture and forestry sector, and one for the marine sector. Due to the extensive nature of the plans and the vast areas covered by the three sectors of agriculture, forestry and the marine, extensive consultation took place with the members of the internal departmental adaptation teams and also with external stakeholders. Their collective expertise was fed directly into the plans.

An open policy debate workshop on adaptation in the agriculture and forest sector was held on 24 November 2016 to encourage stakeholder debate and to coincide with the publication of a draft adaptation plan for the sector. Submissions received as part of this nine-week non-statutory public consultation are currently being considered.

As we seek to continue to sustainably develop the value of the marine sector both to the wider economy as well as to the many communities which it supports, a changing climate poses a tangible threat to our efforts. Developing a greater understanding of the changes occurring around our shores will enable us to plan and adapt in order to ensure the sustainability of the industry and the employment it offers.

The Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 provides that an annual transition statement must be presented to both Houses of the Oireachtas not later than 12 months after the passing of the 2015 Act and not later than each subsequent anniversary of such passing.

The first such statement was presented by the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment last December. My Department contributed to the written statement laid in the Oireachtas Library at the time. The written statement included an overview of climate change mitigation and adaptation policy measures adopted to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and adapt to the effects of climate change in order to enable the achievement of the national transition objective.

Specifically for agriculture, we are working towards an approach of carbon neutrality in the agriculture, forest and land use sector which will not compromise capacity for sustainable food and fibre production. It is important that people have access to a wide and varied diet which can include beef and dairy products. It is equally important that this produce come from the most efficient production systems. Ireland is one of the world’s most efficient food producers in terms of carbon footprint per unit of output and the latest indications are that Irish agriculture greenhouse gas emissions are almost 6% below 1990 values. Ireland also has the capacity to grow a range of tree species which, with the wood products they provide, make a real and sustained contribution to climate change mitigation. However, there is no room for complacency, especially while the agriculture sector, dominated as it is by grass fed ruminants, accounts for approximately 33% of overall Irish greenhouse gas emissions Steps must be taken at all levels, including in industry, in policy and on farms, to continue to implement measures to drive down the greenhouse gas intensity of Irish food production even further from its already existing efficient level. We must produce food and fibre in ways that preserve soil and water quality, protect our biodiversity and mitigate the impact on the climate.

Acting Chairman (Senator Gerry Horkan)

I thank the Minister. There is a very tight timeframe. I have to ask Members to be as brief as they can. I do not want to curtail debate, but if the first few contributors go on too long, later contributors will not get to speak at all.

Senator Paul Daly

I welcome the Minister to the Chamber. Fianna Fáil has a strong record in introducing progressive measures to tackle climate change which is perhaps the single greatest threat to the future of our children and grandchildren. By contrast, the Government has repeatedly ducked and dived in tackling climate change. Its policies lack a strategic vision and have fundamentally failed to progress the decarbonisation of the economy.

We welcome the opportunity to discuss the 2016 annual national transition statement on climate action and low carbon development published last December and the initiatives being carried out by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in this area. The EU 2020 target for Ireland was to reduce emissions by 20%. The Environmental Protection Agency, the EPA, has estimated that Ireland will reduce its non-emissions trading system, ETS, emissions by 6% to 11% from 2005 levels by 2020, or significantly below our reduction target of 20%.

Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions profile is unique within Europe in that it is heavily weighted towards agriculture owing to the lack of heavy industry within the overall economy. However, it is important to stress that since 1990 agricultural emissions in Ireland have reduced by 9.7%, while emissions in other areas such as transport have increased by over 120%. The inclusion of land use, land use change and forestry within the scope of the new EU climate change framework will be a welcome development and represent a sensible approach to broaden the tools available to Ireland to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through carbon sequestration.

In 2015 total national greenhouse gas emissions were estimated to be 3.7% higher than in 2014. Agriculture remains the single largest contributor to overall emissions, at 33% of the total. The transport and energy industries are the second and third largest contributors, at 19.8% and 19.7%, respectively. Agricultural emissions increased by 1.5% in 2015, most likely reflecting the expansion of the dairy herd in the post-quota era. However, this is not because agricultural output is highly polluting. In fact, Ireland is one of the most highly intensive, lowest carbon food producers in the world. The carbon footprint per kilogramme of output of Irish farms is one of the lowest in the world. According to the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, the Irish dairy sector is the most efficient in the European Union in terms of carbon dioxide per kilogram of milk. The director of agricultural policy at the World Bank has lauded the contribution Ireland is making to tackling climate change. I quote: "If every cow was as good as the top 10% of cows in Ireland, we would have one-third less methane emissions on this planet.”

Bord Bia argues that there could be significant economic gains from raising standards on less efficient farms through the use of more carbon efficient technology. According to it, a reduction of 10% in the beef industry's carbon footprint through the use of more efficient food production technologies could make it the most carbon efficient in Europe and generate additional on-farm income in the region of of €300 million per year, as well as improving our green image on global food markets.

I acknowledge the role of the farm schemes in promoting the reduction of greenhouse gases. The green low-carbon agri-environment scheme, GLAS, promotes low-carbon agriculture, the delivery of targeted environmental advice and best practice at farm level.

The objective of the beef data and genomics programme, BDGP, is to lower the intensity of greenhouse gas emissions by improving the quality and efficiency of the national beef herd. The carbon navigator is a key component of the scheme. It delivers feedback and advice on practices that effectively reduce the carbon footprint of farm produce and improve the economic performance of a farm. It encourages the shift in slurry application from the summer to the spring, a practice which can help to significantly reduce emissions. Knowledge transfer is vitally important in this area for the transfer and exchange of information to farmers on a wide range of topics, including sustainability and husbandry practices which contribute to climate action, for example, animal health, breeding and nutrient management.

Organic farming naturally is a major contributor. It promotes organic agriculture as an alternative farming system, contributing to improved soil quality, the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change.

The targeted agricultural modernisation scheme, TAMS, provides for capital investment in a number of target areas to promote sustainability, for example, in low emissions slurry spreading equipment, farm nutrient storage and renewable energy efficiency.

While I acknowledge these schemes, we could achieve more. Fianna Fáil is supportive of environmentally sustainable farming. The model of Irish cattle production is among the most environmentally sustainable on the planet. Final negotiations on EU 2030 targets must underpin the need for food security and the central role of an exporting country such as Ireland which has an efficient food production sector. Irish and EU food security concerns must be put on an equal footing with climate change concerns. Among developed nations, Ireland is second only to New Zealand in having the highest proportion of total greenhouse emissions from agriculture, at 33%. This compares with an EU average of 10%. As stated previously, it must be recognised that this dominance is due to the central role of agriculture in the economy and the absence of high polluting heavy industry. There is a risk that by setting onerous and unrealistic targets for methane and ammonia - emitted mainly by the beef and dairy industries - as proposed by some commentators there could actually be an adverse effect by shifting food production to lower cost but far less carbon efficient countries.

It is essential that Ireland get a fair deal in the negotiations on the technical details associated with greenhouse gas reduction targets and their measurement. Ireland needs to push for land use, land use change and forestry to be recognised as providing a major contribution to greenhouse gas target measurement. We welcome the inclusion of this feature in the scope of the draft EU 2030 binding greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets published in July 2016. This feature can afford huge opportunities to Ireland to achieve win-win outcomes in meeting our reduction targets. For example, only 11% of our land is forested compared to 33% across the European Union. Afforestation has high potential to help us to meet our emissions targets. Even the forests planted since 1990 absorb a massive 18% of agriculture's annual greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, the economic returns from forestry are strongly competitive compared to those from other land uses and could yield a high dividend in terms of regional development and employment.

It is essential that as a country we live up to this agreement and meet our emissions reduction and renewable targets across all areas. We also need to do more to ensure Ireland meets its climate justice commitments, including making progressive contributions to the cost of adaptation, mitigation and emissions reduction measures in developing countries. It is unfortunate that the Government has been so slow in introducing innovative schemes to achieve our greenhouse gas reduction and climate justice targets. Although the latest emission reduction figures are encouraging for some sectors, they show that much more needs to be done. While progress has been made by some areas, especially electricity production and agriculture, to meet our 2020 emissions reduction targets, almost no progress has been made in other areas since 2011, notably home heating and transport. There is no policy in place for reducing home heating emissions, and despite paying lip service to renewable transport, the Government has effectively given up on meeting our targets by 2020. Fianna Fáil is fully committed to meeting our 2020 targets in these areas and has a detailed policy plan for achieving this.

Senator Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

Sinn Féin is committed to reaching the State's renewable energy targets for 2020. The State has committed to generating 16% of its overall energy requirements from renewable sources by 2020. Our party will introduce measures on an ongoing basis to grow renewable energy production and to reduce Ireland's carbon emissions. This will require involvement from the State and at community level.

Our party supported the passage of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 after years of inaction by successive Governments. This was a small but significant step in the right direction, considering the absence of any prior climate action legislation. Inaction by successive Governments means Ireland has hit a carbon cliff and now has to play catch-up to avoid up to €1 billion a year fines after 2020. Our party proposed investing in retrofitting of houses as a means of carbon reduction and tackling fuel poverty. In the first instance, this will mean extending the warmer homes scheme to windows and doors. We oppose any further privatisation of State energy assets. It will involve the full implementation of existing legislation and practice, the setting of sectoral targets for emission limits that Sinn Féin and others tried to correct during the passage of previous legislation through the Dáil. The expert advisory panel created in the Act should be independent of Government. Definite targets for emission limits should be included in legislation. Annual emission limits for each of the ten year periods from 2020 to 2050 should be the same as those agreed by member states under the European Union's Energy Roadmap 2050. Local authorities should be given a greater role in the mitigation plan and in sustainable development more generally. A national green climate fund separate from the environment fund should be established, funded from carbon taxes, emissions, trading profits and other environmental taxes, to be used to support climate mitigation and adaptation in developing countries.

We support the need to advance global commitments to reducing greenhouse gases and meeting goals of holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2° centigrade. The progress made at the UN Conference of the Parties in Paris in December 2015 must be welcomed. The conference involved world leaders, 196 countries and NGO campaigns, including those from Ireland North and South, so we are broadly supportive of that. We believe the Government should be investing in our green industry to boost the economy and provide jobs. We have one of the highest per capita rates of oil consumption in the world. Investment in wave and wind power and other alternative sources of energy must be a priority. The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, has reported that every euro spent on better energy homes delivers a net benefit of €5 to society through energy, CO2 and other pollution savings.

I say all of this as an introduction to the agricultural role. There are many ways that we can collectively meet our objectives. The assessment of the Minister's own Department is that, "The emissions from Irish agriculture are lower now than they were in 1990 - the reference year against which targets are set, when the sector accounted for 34% of national emissions." That sounds quite positive. The Department goes on to talk about carbon sequestration and how:

[W]ell managed grassland soils, the predominant land use in Ireland are effective at sequestering carbon. Scientific measurements in Ireland have shown that this sequestration process cancels out much of the emissions associated with food production. In addition, planting of new forests and good forest management further mitigate emissions from the use of land for food production. Ireland has a programme in place, supported by the Department to increase the planting of new forests.

Again, that is very positive. If one reads what the environmental lobby has to say, it has a completely different analysis. There are contradictory views on this matter.

I will say, because I am from a rural area, that we cannot put the boot into our agricultural community to meet the responsibilities. It has to be shared. There are schemes like the green low-carbon agri-environment scheme, GLAS. According to a presentation to the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine by the Minister's officials, the Department is on target to meet more than 50,000 applications for that scheme, which is very welcome. More schemes of this nature that contribute to our responsibilities are very welcome.

Other sectors of society have to step up here. This is a collective effort and I am concerned. I have read all the different points of view, come from a rural area and understand the critical and important role farmers play in these communities. It will be the Minister's responsibility to square the circle. Food Harvest 2020 sets ambitious targets for our island in food production and contributing to our overall economy. While the Minister needs to square that circle, it is not just his responsibility. Other colleagues such as the Minister, Deputy Naughten, and the Minister, Deputy Ross, in the area of transport, will have to work with the Minister, Deputy Creed. There is a collective responsibility in Government.

This is the Department's analysis. It is published. The Minister is accountable to the European Commission and has to stand over everything he says in that. I could quote from the farming sector and I could quote from the environmental pillar. Both sides have their own perspective and analysis. It will be the Minister's responsibility to stand over the science and to get the balance right. I would be concerned that an unfair emphasis will be put on the farming sector to meet the responsibilities while other sectors are not stepping up when that is what we need to see happen. I thank the Minister for his statement. He has a very challenging balancing act but I think all rural representatives will say there are many things we can do other than what is suggested, which is to slash the national herd. I do not support that.

Acting Chairman (Senator Gerry Horkan)

We have 11 and a half minutes left for three people. That is the order of the House, not me, so I ask everybody who is left to try to be as brief as they can be to allow everybody to get some say. I could possibly eat into the time allowed for the Minister, but I am trying to give him ten minutes at the end to address everybody's concerns. I do not want to delay any more talking about it but I ask every speaker to be as brief as possible to allow others in. I call Senator Mulherin.

Senator Michelle Mulherin

I welcome the Minister. We are having a very important discussion and debate, whereby we can discuss the different sectoral mitigation measures which will feed into the national mitigation plan which is obligatory and which has to be in situ by June this year as I understand it. To my mind, listening to comments, and we all know about the climate debate, the Paris Agreement and the Kyoto Protocol before that, farming tends to get a lot of criticism, and there is a balancing act. We cannot talk about climate change in agriculture without talking about food security. We have to look at things in the round. I believe that is what Government policy is doing.

On the one hand, there has been extreme criticism by people at a very high level that there is no interest in tackling climate change. Clearly, that is not the case as the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 provides a framework. However, the legislation is nuanced. As mitigation measures cost money, we must answer the following questions. Who will bear the cost? How can we get around the issue? It is all very well, no more than with health, to say we should spend more but every service must be paid for out of the public purse. In addition, we do not wish to crush agriculture and leave the sector unproductive. Instead, we want to grow the sector in a responsible manner. At the end of the day, people must eat and we need protein.

The great thing about this debate is it affords us an opportunity to talk about the good stuff that is happening in the agriculture sector. The sector represents 33% of the total national emissions but since 1998, which was the peak level, there has been a 13% reduction in emissions by the sector. There are many reasons for the reduction. Extensive grasslands emit the lowest emissions and luckily that is what we have with our temperate climate. Education is provided through the green cert scheme and Teagasc, which are preaching production efficiency, the proper use of fertilisers and grassland management. We also have Government schemes such as the green low-carbon agri-environment scheme, GLAS, the beef data and genomics programme and the targeted agricultural modernisation scheme, TAMS, as well as organic farming supports.

I am a member of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine and together with its other members, I hear how vast the farming industry is all of the time. At committee meetings we hear from all of the agricultural sectors, the marine sector and the forestry sector. Cost must always be discussed and while imposing a carbon tax would be a crude mechanism, what effect would an increase in the cost of fuel have on farming and on domestic households? Who will carry the burden of a carbon tax?

We must be responsible when it comes to climate change but be willing to compromise. I refer to the comments of the former President, Mary Robinson, who is now an advocate for climate justice. While I am in favour of climate justice and am delighted that someone with her profile is an advocate, it is not a good idea to change to crops that are used in energy production but do not suit our climate. A carbon footprint will be created if we import such crops from the tropics. Ireland produces beef and dairy products that meet a great part of our protein requirements in our diet. If one talks about Armageddon or about extreme scenarios such as halving the national herd, people switch off. Let us remember that farmers are responsible people but they must be able to make a living. If everyone went back far enough they would discover that they hail from a farming background. Generations of farmers have passed on their knowledge and interests. They have safeguarded the countryside for so long. The best way is for us to work with farmers, talk to them and overcome any hurdles.

I wish to refer to targets and tackling the mitigation of carbon emissions. As the Minister will be well aware, food waste is a massive problem and happens in the food chain due to food grading. Sadly, a lot of nutritional food is discarded for not looking a certain way. For example, ugly tomatoes do not make the grade. It costs money to produce and transport food yet food is wasted. There are initiatives to make greater use of food waste. Such initiatives would allow us to be more environmentally conscientious and face up to our responsibilities.

Microenergy generation is another issue for farmers. Our policies do not lend themselves to microwind initiatives. What about introducing district heating systems using biomass and biogas? As there has been investment in sustainable forestry, there are more opportunities to have in place systems that will grow the sector and add value such as producing wood chip or whatever in rural areas that are crying out for jobs, investment and growth. The forestry sector would lend itself to further growth and holds potential for rural areas. Investment in the sector would help us to meet job creation targets.

Can the Minister tell me the status of the renewable heat incentivisation scheme? The horticultural sector and mushroom growers have raised this issue.

On transport, we face challenges in meeting certain targets. While pilot projects have focused on big HGVs and the like, how can the Government support farmers with this issue?

With all due respect to Senator Paul Daly, nothing he says can change the reality. He sounds like he has become a member of the Green Party but that is untrue. The idea that Fianna Fáil made massive strides towards creating a low carbon economy is untrue. I was a Deputy for five years before becoming a Senator so I know this is not the case. However, I commend the work that has been done. We need to bring people with us. There is no point in making ridiculous statements on how to tackle carbon emissions without discussing how measures will affect the people who will have to make the necessary changes and incur the associated costs and hardships.

Acting Chairman (Senator Gerry Horkan)

Senators O'Sullivan and Higgins have indicated that they would like to share time.

Senator Grace O'Sullivan

Yes, we wish to share time.

Acting Chairman (Senator Gerry Horkan)

If they use up all of their time then Senator Humphreys will not get any time.

Senator Grace O'Sullivan

I shall speed-read my presentation. I thank the Minister for attending and for his statement. I was delighted to hear him talk about the marine sector because Ireland's greatest asset in sequestering carbon is our marine environment. It was good to hear him talk about adding value through creating jobs in the forestry and marine sectors.

Ireland is doing good work in addressing the production efficiency of our livestock agriculture. We have undermined that good work, however, by promoting an even greater concentration on ruminants with their particularly high greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time that concentration has also had negative impacts on water quality and biodiversity. Over recent decades our agricultural policy has increasingly specialised in livestock, particularly ruminant agriculture. We have put all our money into one basket and this policy will reduce our resilience to potential food security shocks and will increase significantly our greenhouse gas emissions compared with a more mixed and balanced agricultural sector.

This is not an issue for Ireland alone, as we share competence for agricultural policy with the EU. Although the EU has long proclaimed that climate change is an objective to be pursued across policy areas, the Common Agricultural Policy still fails to integrate climate change and continues to drive increased emissions from agriculture. It is not an EU issue alone. Increases in agricultural emissions are being driven by a global dietary shift towards being more emissions-intensive, more land-intensive and having less sustainable foods. The information from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is clear. Its review of the science of climate change mitigation demonstrates that agricultural emissions must be tackled on the production and demand sides. Specifically, as well as increasing production efficiency, we must reduce the amount of food waste, reduce over-consumption of food and shift food choices to more sustainable foods. Science also demonstrates that these changes will have major benefits for human health, including addressing the growing global obesity crisis.

Unfortunately, the good work on production efficiency which Ireland is doing under Origin Green has been used to promote increased consumption of beef and dairy, the most greenhouse gas intensive foods. Not only are we doing ordinary promotion, we are sending anthropologists to distant countries to understand how to convince people to change their food choices to more greenhouse gas intensive foods. This is wrong. It shows our statements about sustainable food production to be hypocritical. I am particularly deeply concerned by the ethics of Bord Bia promoting the use of breast milk substitute in Asia.

Far from addressing the demand side of greenhouse gas mitigation in agriculture, Ireland is actively promoting demand for carbon-intensive foodstuffs. This must change. We also need a large-scale programme of restoration of our native mixed-species broadleaf forests, as well as the protection of our peatlands and wetlands, which act as carbon sinks. Ecosystems will help us re-absorb the carbon we have put into the atmosphere, if we are willing to work with them and restore them.

Climate change is the greatest challenge we face. It will not be fixed by tinkering at the edges of our agricultural and forestry systems. Food Harvest 2025 and our forestry policy, centred on Sitka spruce plantations, are in conflict with our climate commitments. We need fundamental changes.

Senator Alice-Mary Higgins

I welcome the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Michael Creed, to the House. We already have heard that Ireland is off track to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20% across non-industrial sectors by 2020. At present, we are heading for cuts of only between 6% and 11%. I am more concerned about a report from Brussels-based non-governmental organisation, Carbon Market Watch, which highlighted how Ireland has negotiated a wide variety of get-out clauses and other special exemptions for 2020 to 2030. We need to be on target and send strong signals in that regard. Any short-term negotiation to reduce our targets will not serve us towards the overall 2050 target of cuts of 80% to 95% of our emissions.

We need to make strong decisions now to ensure we are actively incentivising and demanding from the public and private sectors the investment in the necessary emissions-reducing technologies, as well as sectorial priorities, which will help us transition to a low-carbon economy. This means new choices. Ireland has an extraordinarily low level of horticulture and fruit production, despite our conducive climate. This area represents about 10% of our action production, as opposed to grassland. How will we re-focus in that regard?

Ireland has indicated a land use move from 11% to 18% of forest cover to be utilised as carbon sinks. There are recognised scientific concerns about flaws in the reliance on forestry as a carbon offset. The intergovernmental panel on climate change stated land sequestration itself is uncertain and subject to carbon cycle rebound and can be of reductive value. I am concerned we are overstating our reliance on the land use alone.

That said, it is important we are talking about forests, not simply about trees. In 2013 in an article 17 report as part of the habitats directive, Sitka spruce forestry, which is not biodiverse and does not create an organic setting but single crop forestry, was recognised as a conservation threat to our habitats and species. What are the Minister’s plans to make forestry more diverse? How does the pollinator plan fit in with the forestry plan?

We did not include our national peatlands in our land use strategy. I am curious, as well as concerned, that we do not seem willing to move away from peat extraction. The Bord na Móna deadline of 2030 to move away from peat extraction is inadequate. The fact we still intend to extract peat for horticulture and mushroom casing beyond 2030 seems unsustainable. Has the Minister spoken to the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs about hedgerows?

Senator Kevin Humphreys

What I have heard from the two main parties this evening does not encourage me that we are taking climate change seriously. All we get is an approach of "on the one hand but on the other". We must face down one of the largest lobby groups, namely the farmers’ organisations. We have tough choices to make and we have to show leadership. The debate is not about food security or how much beef or milk we can generate. While we have to ensure and secure a viable living can be had by those in rural areas, we cannot do that at the expense of tackling climate change. I supported Senators when they raised the issue of the effects of climate change on tillage farmers who were unable to harvest their crops due to heavy rainfall on the western seaboard. However, we cannot start dealing with alternative facts.

Fianna Fáil stopped and blocked the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act when it was in government with the Green Party. It was up to the previous Government to get that legislation passed which is why the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine is taking this matter in the House. Now, we need to be brave. This is not a charge from the anti-rural brigade or about an urban-rural divide. We need a realistic debate on climate change and how we reach our targets in this regard. We need to discuss how we will assist people to change over to the new reality that climate change is happening and will affect every single person in this country. We need to discuss how we invest in rural Ireland to ensure we alleviate these effects as much as possible. Change we must but the clock is ticking. It is two minutes to midnight and there is a real need to show leadership. Instead, it is just the old mantra about food security and how, on the one hand, we will do this and, on the other, we will do that.

I thank the Minister, as well as the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Deputy Denis Naughten, for attending the House to debate the issue of climate change. Unfortunately, the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Shane Ross, has not attended.

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (Deputy Michael Creed)

I thank all Members who contributed to this debate. Everyone is sincere about where we need to go on this. The most important point is that we have a capacity to bring people with us.

On the point that Senator Kevin Humphreys made about the farming organisations, I do not believe it is a case of facing down anybody. It is about recognising who has done what to date and what more we need to do. Facing down the agricultural community flies in the face of the fact that it is among the most carbon-efficient producers on the planet. This is not an idle boast. The EU’s Joint Research Centre acknowledged that Ireland is the most carbon-efficient producer of beef. I take Senator Grace O’Sullivan's point about ruminants. We can have a philosophical debate about all of that but we must acknowledge what has been done and is under way with initiatives such as the beef data genomics, which improved herd fertility, food conversion and so forth. We are committed to driving down further our carbon footprint in this regard.

On the dairy side, we are the most carbon-efficient producer of dairy products on the planet, alongside New Zealand. Why would one face down the farming organisations to tell them to dismantle this? What would happen if we dismantled it? It would facilitate imports with a far higher carbon footprint because one is not going to change immediately the dietary habits of people disposed towards beef or dairy product consumption.

As Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, I acknowledge the farming community has led the way. Ill-informed people will point the finger claiming it contributes to 33% of our carbon footprint. While that is true, we have not had the history of coal and steel production like the UK or continental Europe. We are the most carbon-efficient producer of food. Why dismantle that and have it displaced by food produced with a far higher carbon footprint, as Senator Mulherin said, which streams into this country from far-flung corners of the world?

We can do more, for example, to promote horticulture and my Department is incentivising that sector, but this is a complex, nuanced area. I do not believe this debate is advanced one iota by the pejorative proposal to face down the farming organisations. I suggest Senator Humphreys meet them and he would find a community whose members are as concerned as he is about this issue. They are concerned about the future of their children and grandchildren and the planet they will inherit. They are committed to addressing this issue and they have done a good deal in that respect but they acknowledge that the agricultural sector needs to do more.

I acknowledge Senator Paul Daly's bona fides and I equally acknowledge the points that have been made about his party's bona fides in the past. I do not want to go anywhere else with that. A good deal has been done. The Senator talked about ducking and diving but that does not advance this debate one iota.

Senator Michelle Mulherin

Fianna Fáil eco-warriors.

Deputy Michael Creed

In terms of actions in this area that this and the previous Government have taken, they are numerous, and I would cite the introduction of the green, low-carbon, agri-environment scheme, GLAS, and the beef data and genomics programme, which are critical in protecting groundwater sources etc. We have much more to do. I am focusing in on the argifood side and I acknowledge the point made by Senator O'Sullivan on the marine area. Is there anybody more exposed to climate change in terms of rising sea levels than coastal communities? We need to factor all these into the debate and, hopefully, we will be in a position to publish our consultation on the marine side perhaps before the end of March and then we will invite other submissions. We acknowledge that we must bring people along with us. The approach is not to take a stick and beat people in other areas to take action.

Acting Chairman (Senator Gerry Horkan)

In line with an order of the House, I must ask the Minister to conclude, as the Minister, Deputy Zappone, has arrived to take the next business. If the Minister, Deputy Creed, continues he will reduce the amount of time available to the Minister, Deputy Zappone.

Senator Kevin Humphreys

I would like to hear that Minister answer questions.

Deputy Michael Creed

I thank colleagues for their contributions and we will take them on board because we acknowledge we must bring people along with us in this debate.